HOW TO BUY ETHEREUM (ETH) WITH PAYPAL | BEGINNERS GUIDE

Buying Ethereum with PayPal is a great option for the buyers facing crypto regulations in their countries of residence. At the same time, this is a feasible alternative to banks whose transaction or conversion fees are considered too high for the transaction process.

You can buy Ethereum formally using PayPal which is not a straightforward procedure. With our article we make you understand with a step-by-step procedure to buy and sell Ether.

So, if you are thinking how to buy Ethereum with PayPal in the easiest way, the answer lies in using your PayPal account to buy bitcoins first, as this cryptocurrency is flexible and allows more transactions at the moment.

What is Ethereum?

Ethereum is a decentralized system and an open source computing platform, meaning it has no centralized control by any single governing entity. Ethereum enables developers to build and deploy dApps like smart contracts while also supporting complex financial or legal applications.

Ethereum backs the modified version of Satoshi Nakamoto’s consensus via transaction-based state transitions.

The Ethereum platform generates cryptocurrency called Ether, which can be transferred between accounts and is to compensate participant mining nodes for the computations performed.

(Nodes: An essential point of a cryptocurrency network which validates the blockchain.)

In simple words, Ethereum runs smart contracts or applications precisely as they are programmed without any possibility of downtime or third-party obstruction.

In 2011, Vitalik Buterin the creator of Ethereum discovered blockchain and cryptocurrencies only through Bitcoin and immediately after this he co-founded the Bitcoin Magazine.

And in November 2013, Vitalik wrote the Ethereum white paper and made it live to the public in July 2015, with 11.9 million coins for the crowdsale.

Vitalik now leads the company with Patrick Storchenegger and Jeffrey Wilcke as Ethereum’s co-founders.

In the year 2016, the breakdown of the DAO(Decentralized Autonomous Organization) project, ethereum split into two different blockchains, where the separate version is called as Ethereum(ETH) and the original as Ethereum Classic (ETC).

What is Ether?

Ether is a ‘crypto-fuel’ which is a token, used for operating the distributed application platform Ethereum. Like any other cryptocurrency, ether can be mined and traded as well.

Ether is primarily used for two purposes; for trading as digital currency exchange like all other cryptocurrencies and is used within Ethereum to run applications and also to monetize work.

Ethereum Virtual Machine

Ethereum Virtual Machine, also known as EVM, is Ethereum’s core innovation and is a Turing complete software which adopts Ethereum network to run the software. EVM empowers anyone to run any program with enough time and memory.

EVM is efficient in creating blockchain application, and it helps in developing more number of potential applications all under one platform.

Ethereum empowers developers to build decentralized applications (dApps). A decentralized application is the driving force for Ethereum’s progress and there are dApps for various domains.

Some of the popular dApps built on Ethereum platform are:

IDEX

IDEX is a decentralized application that is developed by Aurora, a decentralized finance and crypto-banking platform. IDEX is currently focusing on developing a stack of blockchain based financial services.

Ethlance

Ethlance is one of the popular dApps for jobs which are based remotely. Ethlance is free to use and it benefits many employees who are working as freelancers for the companies.

Aragon

Aragon is focusing on local business management and help entrepreneurs to create decentralized autonomous organizations. This is because it is difficult for low capital individuals to own a business in countries with strict government regulations.

Buying Ethereum using PayPal

We are going to share all the possible methods to purchase Ethereum using PayPal as transactions here are irrevocable. However, there are specific indirect ways which are used by users around the world to buy currencies using PayPal money.

But before you purchase Ethereum via PayPal, here is our take on why buying Ethereum using Paypal is the best investment opportunity.

Why purchase via PayPal?

The Ethereum blockchain is booming in nature. The currency of Ether is in circulation for every 15 seconds, however, with forthcoming protocols, this supply inflation will drop. And as a result, Ethereum will have no more than 100,000,000 coins that will be circulating and that the inflation will drop down to close to 0%, or may even collapse.

And if any further demand for these tokens, it will also have an upward pressure in its price.

The bottom line of whether purchasing Ethereum using PayPal comes down to the demand of the currency it has in future. Broadly, demand is influenced by two main factors:

Usage of Blockchain

There are hardly any Ethereum decentralized applications (dApps) that provide the real world value. And for this reason, the blockchain in its current state offers very little to its users. With dApps like Augur, uPort and FunFair are impending towards production readiness and Ethereum’s blockchain is looking for a rapid increase through a structure called as “Sharding.”

Store of Value

Many blockchain users term Bitcoin as the “store of value” token, but fail to understand the capability of Ethereum. By the end of this year, Ethereum is about generating a regular dividend payment with a protocol called “Casper”( a proof of stake consensus algorithm )

Transaction Medium

Ether is rapidly being used in the day-to-day transaction of funds. In the mid of 2017, ether surpassed bitcoin in terms of daily transactions.

It is widely used because Ethereum is used as a platform for other cryptocurrencies. Since ethereum is a more optimized cryptocurrency than bitcoin, the transactions of Ether are confirmed faster by the blockchain.

Buying BTC using PayPal and exchanging it for ETH

As of now, there are no prominent sites that allow purchasing of Ethereum with PayPal. However, we’ve come up with a straightforward solution, where you can buy Bitcoin first with PayPal and then exchange it with Ethereum.

Buying Bitcoin(BTC) with PayPal

Numerous sites offer you to purchase bitcoin with PayPal, we’ve found out that VirWoX is the simplest and the most popular of sites. Although there is no way you can buy bitcoins directly through VirWox, it is possible only if you buy Second Life Lindens(SLL) and then sell these for bitcoins.

This process might seem complicated, but it works reliably. But the significant hindrance here is that the associated fee charged here is roughly around 10%.

A step-by-step guide to help you bitcoins with PayPal on VirWox exchange:

Steps:

Deposit fiat currencies like dollars or euros using PayPal to VirWox exchange.

With USD or EUR, purchase Second Life Lindens(SSL)

Buy bitcoins with your “Second Life Lindens.”

Now, withdraw BTC to your bitcoin wallet.

Note: You may have to wait a couple of days after opening a VirWox account before depositing your money.

And if you are looking to buy Ethereum, Coinbase is another website which makes it easy for you to convert local currency into and out of Ethereum.

Coinbase is available in many countries, and if not available in your country, we have also provided a few other options in this article.

Coinbase is perhaps the most user-friendly platform which allows users to purchase cryptocurrencies seamlessly.

We are going to show just how it is done with our step-by-step guide below:

Step 1

Firstly, sign up for Coinbase and create an account.

Step 2

Next, you have to link your Bank Account, credit card or debit card. You have to complete a few verification steps further before you begin to use the account. Connecting a bank account can take about four to five days of trade.Step 3

In the final step, you will have a list of cryptocurrencies. Click on “Ethereum” and mention the amount you want to buy. The selling part also works the same way but in reverse.Coinbase also lets you know the current value of ether and displays you the exchange rate before you buy.In the beginning, you will have a $150 limit to the number of ethers you can purchase. Once you become a regular user of Coinbase, the limits you have initially will increase.When you are in the checkout page, it will ask you to authorize your transaction, and as we mentioned it earlier, it will also charge you a basic fee. Click “Confirm” to go ahead with the purchase.

Sites that let you buy BTC with PayPal

Various options to let you buy Bitcoins with PayPal are listed below. We have listed the steps to buy BTC, after the list of the sites.

PAXFUL

LocalBitcoins

Wirex

Steps for using those sites to get BTC:

Below are the steps to purchase BTC with PayPal on each of the sites that are listed above.

PAXFUL

Paxful is probably the best place to buy, sell and send bitcoin as it supports over 300 ways of payment including Western Union, MoneyGram, Gift Cards and many more. It is available in majority of countries, with fees as low as 1%.

The process of buying bitcoins is quite simple:

Create an account with Paxful

Select the payment method and the desired amount

Choose your seller; you can either choose manually or let Paxful decide the best seller for you.

Once the trade commences, you will be sent to an online chat with the seller where you get to finalize the deal. Bitcoin’s will be sent into Escrow, and once you’ve sent the payment, they will be sent to your account. If you find don’t finalize on the deal inside a specific time frame, the deal is subject to auto-cancellation.

LocalBitcoins

LocalBitcoins is another Bitcoin trading platform with over 1 million registered users from more than 250 countries. LocalBitcoin also has something called as over-the-counter(OTC) trading where you can trade bitcoins for traditional currencies through person to person trades.

To purchase BTC on LocalBitcoins, follow this process:

Create an account with the site and login

Go to Buy bitcoins, and you will see a list of sellers, so that you can skim through them one by one. Take into consideration the following things:

Trade Limits: Each seller carries a minimum and maximum amount of Bitcoins which can be traded on the platform.

Feedback Score: A score is right under the seller’s name. We suggest you to trade with a seller who has a high feedback score.

Payment Window: You must also consider the waiting period for sending the funds, once you initiate the trade.

Execute the Trade: After you find the seller, enter the amount you want to buy and click on “Send Trade Request”.

And this is how you buy a BTC with LocalBitcoins.

Wirex

Wirex is an entirely different platform that supplies virtual and physical Bitcoin debit cards. Wirex’s card works like every other debit card that can be used to your PayPal account.

To buy bitcoin with Wirex, here’s what you need to do:

Get a Wirex Account

Sign in to the account by uploading copies of your ID and address proof for a Know-Your Customer(KYC) check.

Placing an order for a Wirex debit card

To start purchasing Bitcoins on Wirex, click on “request new card” and select the card you want(Physical/Virtual). However, it is impossible to buy bitcoins through PayPal with both the cards.

Generally, a virtual card will cost you something around $3.

Connect the Debit Card to your PayPal account

Within your PayPal account, Head over to Wallet-> Add a Card and add your newly attained virtual Bitcoin credit card. Once the card is added, verify it and to do it, you need to have a minimum balance of $3, for PayPal to charge you. Once it charges you, you will be sent a 4-digit code-beside to your transaction on your Wirex account.

Deposit and Withdraw fund from your PayPal account

Deposit is quite comfortable on PayPal, but for withdrawal, Go to “Wallet” -> “Withdraw funds” and choose “withdraw funds to your card” option.

Double check to see that you have selected Wirex card. Usually, the withdrawal to appear on your Wirex account takes up to 7 days to appear.

Purchase Bitcoins with your Wirex debit card

With funds in your card, spend them on buying a few bitcoins. However, the entire process might take some time as verifying the card with PayPal takes some time and withdrawing takes a week, depending on where you live.

Exchanges where to trade BTC for ETH

The list below shows exchangers where you can conveniently trade BTC for ETH.

Shapeshift is a progressive part of the cryptocurrency ecosystem. And that’s how digital asset must work. With no account required, shapeshift allows you to swap between assets quickly.

So take note of this process, to trade BTC with ETH.

Select Bitcoin as input and Ether as the output.

Submit your Ether address from your Ether wallet in the top box and your Bitcoin address(refund address). Agree to terms and conditions, and then click on “Start Transaction Button”.

Shapeshift generates a Bitcoin deposit address(this is the address you will send your bitcoin from your bitcoin wallet.) And Shapeshift wants you to send your bitcoin address to this generated address, and not to send the amount over the “Deposit Max” or under the “Deposit Min.”

Changelly is a full-fledged platform that allows you to convert any cryptocurrency platform to other currencies, instantly.

With the following process, you will learn how to do it:

Once you enter the changelly site, select BTC under “You Have” and ETH under “You Get.”

As you click on Exchange, and on the next page you will find the details of the transaction.

Changelly also does require you to create an account with your email address.

Click Next and enter your wallet address of Ethereum, where you would want to receive the converted Ether.

Click Next and the page you enter will have all the details of the conversion you are making. If you are okay with the information, click on “Confirm” and make the payment.

And in the next page, you will see the QR code and the Bitcoin wallet address, in which the BTC has to be sent to convert it into ETH. Once you send the payment, you can go forth and close the tab as you will receive email notification when the payment is complete.

To trade two of the most popular cryptocurrencies, Bitcoin and Ethereum available in the market. CEX.io is here and gives you abundance of opportunities allowing you to trade with different cryptocurrencies comfortably.

To trade BTC with ETH, follow this process:

Create an account with CEX.io and login to proceed with the trade.

Fund your account with bitcoins, so that it is convenient for you to exchange.

The last step is the Selection, select Bitcoin(BTC)/ Ethereum(ETH) and exchange.

With CEX.io, you can be sure of that your data, all your personal information is safely intact with the regulations and laws.

Wallets to transfer your Ethereum

Types of Ethereum Wallets

Ethereum Wallets: Desktop

The desktop wallets and mobile wallet work just the same way, but the currencies are stored on your PC or Laptop. The significant drawback here is that it is prone to hacks and attacks. This only means that the entire security of storing your Ether is on you.

Types of Desktop Wallets:

Ethereum Wallets: Web

Web or online wallets offers you easy accessibility and work fine with devices that have connectivity with internet such as Laptops and mobiles. To store Ether on these wallets, you need to choose a wallet that has a considerable amount of reputation in the market of wallets.

What is Web wallet?

Web wallet or Online wallet are cryptocurrency wallets where you can have access to these via browsers. Hot Wallets are generally referred to as Online Wallets, the only thing that makes it complicated is when we debate over different platforms such as a desktop or mobile wallets.

Web wallets are very much alike the exchange wallets which follows the same process; log in with a two-way factor and you are all set to access your wallet.

Although starting with Ethereum wallets is a tedious process. Here is a list of wallets that let you transfer Ethereum quite easily.

Advantages of Storing EthereumWeb Wallet:

Easily Accessible: Web wallets can be accessed from any device that has internet connectivity.

Holding Cryptocurrencies: These wallets are perfect for keeping a small number of cryptocurrencies.

Disadvantages of Storing Ethereum on Web Wallet:

Not so secure: Computers are open to malwares, and sometimes the control could get out of your hand. And this makes storing of private keys on the web prone to phishing.

Out of your authority: Basically, the information related to cryptocurrencies that on a web wallet is not under your authority as it is stored on a third-party platform. Because of this, you might not withdraw or send cryptocurrencies that are stored on your wallet. And sometimes they might even freeze your withdrawal or close your account.

Online Trouble: After all, your cryptocurrencies are stored online, your funds are likely to be affected by malicious malware, hacks and phishing scams.

Types of Web Wallets:

Ethereum Wallets: Hardware

Hardware wallets are physical wallets that offer an extra layer of security to cold storage wallets like paper wallets. As cryptocurrencies are stored in a device, it makes them more secure when compared to other forms of wallets such as desktop and mobile.

Types of Hardware Wallets:

Trezor: It can store currencies like Ether, Bitcoin, and Litecoin. And the Trezor costs $99 for a single device.

Ledger Nano S: Although it is not as advanced as Trezon, with features like accessing funds without connecting to a computer, this is popular among the ERC20 token and Ether users. The cost of Ledger Nano S is $95.

A step-by-step guide on how to sell Ethereum

One of the finest and most commonly used ways to sell Ethereum is to first exchange Ether with Bitcoin and then sell it on PayPal. Once you convert Ether to Bitcoins, you can sell Bitcoins on different exchange platforms for PayPal.

Exchange ETH to BTC

For this process of exchanging Ether to Bitcoins, we’ve used CEX.io to help us with the conversion.

Sites that support PayPal payout

Companies that accept Ethereum

Ethereum is accepted by most of the companies due to its advanced blockchain technology. Some of the companies listed below use ether as a currency for transaction.

Houston based company Tapjets, a private jet booking platform, accepts ethereum which empowers customers to book the flight instantly and provide a great customer experience.

Overstock.com, an interior designing company, accepts ethereum from customers to pay for the products.

The VPS hosting company Snel.com usually incorporates new technologies for maximum customer satisfaction. Snel.com provides flexibility to use ethereum for customers to pay for subscriptions.

How do these companies accept Ethereum?

Ethereum’s technology and versatility enable to do the business with ease for many traders and business personnel. If you want to do transactions with ethereum, below are some companies that process ETH payments:

ethPay

ethPay technology is a decentralized system and uses ethereum smart contracts for ethereum payments. It processes all the transactions in a secure and simple way. It is economical and charges only 1% for payments that accept ETH.

Coinpayments

Coinpayments is a Canadian company which uses cloud wallet solution and offers one of the best ethereum payment gateways. It charges 0.5% commission on all payments.

The mobile features of Coinpayments make it exceptional when compared to other platforms.

Paywithether.com

Paywithether.com is an Australian company which mainly facilitates payments of ether for woocommerce (an open source e-commerce plugin for WordPress) sites. You need the plugin and register to become a member.

It uses an API which enables a client to directly send the money to your account.

Benefits of paying with Ethereum

Ethereum transaction is simple and the customer has control over handling transactions.

High-security encryption mechanism makes ethereum one of the most secure platforms for businesses.

Ethereum comes with a complete internal code and anything can be solved with enough time and power.

CONCLUSION

Although Ethereum is new into the cryptocurrency market, it still manages to garner users looking to invest in currencies other than Bitcoin.

The sites that are mentioned in this post are tried and tested personally by our team of crypto experts, but it is up to you who you cling onto.

With fast-paced technology space, Ethereum has all the ingredients to be the next Bitcoin by providing users for utilizing the “decentralized applications”(dApps) on top of their underlying networks.

A few of the process in this article might seem tedious to you, but you can always drop in your queries and thoughts you have about Ethereum in the comments section below. And we’ll help you out with it.